ERANDA Rothschild Foundation Endows Sir Evelyn de Rothschild Undergraduate Scholarship Programme at LSE

A £3 million gift will fund three-year scholarships for UK undergraduates, selected from the most under-represented groups within higher education, who are resident in the UK, every year in perpetuity, extending a philanthropic legacy that spans more than five decades

LONDON, Aug. 31, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The ERANDA Rothschild Foundation has completed a £3 million gift to the London School of Economics and Political Science to endow the Sir Evelyn de Rothschild Undergraduate Scholarship Programme for undergraduate UK students. The endowment will fund three new undergraduate scholarships each academic year, in perpetuity, honouring the memory and philanthropic legacy of Sir Evelyn de Rothschild, the financier and Foundation chairman who died in November 2022 at the age of 91.

The gift enters LSE's permanent endowment, meaning the awards will renew year after year rather than expire once an initial pool of funding is exhausted. The structure reflects a deliberate choice to create lasting institutional support rather than a one-time contribution.

A scholarship built around access

Each award supports a three-year undergraduate degree at LSE. Three new students will enter the programme each academic year, with each cohort progressing through to graduation before the next intake begins. The scholarships carry a stated preference for students drawn from the groups most under-represented in UK higher education.

Eligibility spans eight academic departments: Economics, Economic History, Management, Government, Social Policy, Finance, International Relations, and Geography and Environment. That breadth mirrors the disciplinary range for which the School is internationally known and gives recipients a wide field of study within the social sciences.

The programme is designed to remove financial obstacles for talented UK applicants who might otherwise be unable to take up a place. By funding the full duration of a degree rather than a single year, the scholarship offers recipients stability across their entire undergraduate journey, a factor that admissions research consistently links to stronger completion and outcomes.

A long association with the School

The gift extends a relationship between the late financier and LSE that reached across more than four decades. He served on the School's Court of Governors from 1968 until 2010 and held the title of Emeritus Governor thereafter. He also sat on the advisory board of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment from its founding in 2008, and he was a member of the committee for the £100 million Campaign for LSE, which ran from 1997 to 2007.

The Foundation itself has supported the School since 1974, directing funding toward scholarships, campus redevelopment and academic-led projects over that period. The new endowment builds on that record and channels it toward a single, renewable purpose focused on undergraduate access.

The Programme will support a three-year undergraduate programme at LSE for three new undergraduate students every year in perpetuity. These students will be selected from the most under-represented groups within higher education, aligning with LSE's mission of welcoming the most talented students, regardless of background.

Part of a wider philanthropic record

Education has featured prominently among the causes the Foundation has backed. Its earlier commitments include a £500,000 gift in 2015 that established the Sir Evelyn de Rothschild Scholarships in War Studies at King's College London, supporting 25 students over five years, and sustained backing for junior research fellowships at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, where early-career analysts pursue careers in international economics.

Those gifts sit alongside decades of support for medical research, health and welfare, and the arts. The through-line across the Foundation's education work has been access: funding aimed at students who show ability but face financial or structural barriers to advanced study. The LSE endowment applies that same principle at undergraduate level and secures it in perpetuity.

Since its founding, the Foundation has given more than £74 million to charitable causes. The scholarship programme represents one of its most enduring commitments to a single institution, converting a long personal association into a permanent source of support for future undergraduates.

About The ERANDA Rothschild Foundation

The ERANDA Rothschild Foundation is a family foundation established in 1967 to support charities working in medical research, health and welfare, education and the arts. Its name is an acronym drawn from the names of the founder and his siblings, a personal touch that traces back to a wartime letter written by his father. The Foundation's giving record now exceeds £74 million across a wide range of organisations, the majority of them in the United Kingdom, and it distributes several million pounds in grants each year.

The Foundation approaches philanthropy with the discipline of an operating institution, favouring sustained partnerships and measurable impact over short-term giving. Its education portfolio has funded scholarships, fellowships and endowed academic posts at leading universities, reflecting a conviction that opportunity in education compounds across generations.

About Sir Evelyn de Rothschild

Sir Evelyn de Rothschild was a British financier, philanthropist and member of the Rothschild family who spent his later years dedicated to charitable work. Born in London in 1931 and educated at Harrow School and the University of Cambridge, he led the family bank NM Rothschild and Sons Ltd as chief executive and chairman from 1976 to 2003, and he served as chairman of The Economist from 1972 to 1989. He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1989 for services to banking and finance.

Alongside his career in finance, the late Sir Evelyn built a philanthropic legacy that continues through the institutions he supported. He founded the ERANDA Rothschild Foundation in 1967 and chaired it for the rest of his life, and in 2002 he co-founded the conservation charity Elephant Family. His giving reached universities, hospitals, research institutes and cultural organisations across the United Kingdom and beyond, with a particular emphasis on education and on opening opportunities to students from under-represented backgrounds. The Sir Evelyn de Rothschild Undergraduate Scholarship Programme at LSE carries that commitment forward, ensuring his name continues to support the next generation of students long after his death.

Media Contact

Geraldine Hedger – The ERANDA Rothschild Foundation, [email protected]

SOURCE The ERANDA Rothschild Foundation